Montana de Tauro - Puerto Mogan
Description
This trail is a high-class downhill trail, but we recommend rough trail bikes and not downhill bikes, as there are some sections where you have to step up a little. But by all means - we're only talking about parts of 100 meters on a slight incline, so it's fine... Having said that, remember correct air pressure, patching, hoses, good brakes and concentration because here we're talking a lot of rock - the type that spewed out of volcanoes and solidified! This is not the trail you show to someone who only rides soft dirt trails, and you can forget about hard tail! The fear of heights is also nice to leave at home... OK, enough warnings. You just have to take it easy and go on a trip :)
The trail starts at the highest point on the mountain road between Barranquillo Andres and Mogan, a road that is an attraction in itself.. You see the peak directly south of you and the trail starts 100 meters on the right side of the road looking east from the small parking lot by the water reservoir. Here we are talking some cycling, but mainly pushing to the top. Follow my trail and get me the vantage point at the summit. Here you can see large parts of the south side of the island as well as Pico de las Nieves (the island's highest mountain) and Tenerife with Mount Teide in the west.
Push from there to the top and feel free to take a short hike on the flat top part while loading up on food and drink. The terrain that opens up in the south is a wonderful sight, and here you can also see the start of the path. The start of the path is on the other side of the mountain from where you pushed up from the summit (see track) - i.e. to the west. This connects you with a new path that goes south - it's impossible to cycle wrong. This in turn crosses with PR GC-45, which is marked hiking. Follow this all the way down along the rock chaos, flow, small drops and an awful lot of fun. Eventually you come to some parts where the path goes all the way out on the edge of the cliffs down towards the valley below you. This is where you should forget the aforementioned fear of heights. At a small crossing at the very edge of a cliff, a new path (PR GC-46) descends into the valley. This is perhaps the strangest crossroads I've seen, but yes - there is a path down there.... pretty sick. I read later that it is certainly very nice and a work of art in itself. Gave up cycling down there, and instead continued south on PR GC-45.
Gradually the path plunges down to the right and into a narrow valley. Here, unfortunately, a little hell begins and you unfortunately have to go through a dry canyon which in turn takes you to a new valley that plunges down to El Cercado. Here it is insanely steep and rocky and it seems like it will never end. If you cycle down this entire trail with your health, brakes and bike intact, call me for a pint or ten at my expense... Unfortunately, this lot has to go - no other way out, but it's worth it considering the cycling you just left behind you.. Gradually it flattens out a bit and there is a nice flow out the valley to El Cercado north of Puerto Mogan.
Car or taxi here back to the top. Or as I did - took the bus back to Arguineguin (but don't trust that every bus driver is a man of good humor..)
Access
Here you need transport to the top of the road between Barranquillo Andres and Mogan. Easiest is to drive up from Mogan, but if you want to test a real mountain road, you drive up from the other side:)) In some places, the road is sickly narrow with hairpin bends.
